The prevalence of rickettsiae, ehrlichiae, and the rickettsia-like endosymbiont called Montezuma relative to that of Borrelia was determined in questing Ixodes persulcatus (I. persulcatus) ticks collected in 2002-2003 from Vologda Province, Russia. Ehrlichia muris, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Montezuma, and new spotted fever group rickettsiae were detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the first time in this area. The rickettsiae were all Candidatus Rickettsia tarasevichiae, the furthest west this organism has been detected. After Borrelia, Montezuma was the agent most frequently detected; it may be present throughout the distribution of I. persulcatus in Russia. Ehrlichiae and rickettsiae frequently share the same tick host with Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato so cotransmission and mixed infections in vertebrate hosts, including humans, may occur.

Our aim was to determine the presence of Rickettsia spp. and Bartonella spp. in Ctenocephalides felis and Ctenocephalides canis from La Rioja (Spain). A total of 88 specimens were tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using gltA and ompB genes as targets for Rickettsia spp., and 16S rRNA and ribC genes for Bartonella spp. Rickettsia felis-like (28.4%), Bartonella clarridgeiae (6.8%), and Bartonella henselae (3.4%) were detected in Ctenocephalides spp. Other Bartonella sp. different from B. clarridgeiae and B. henselae could also be present in fleas from La Rioja.

Ixodes ricinus, the most commonly observed tick species in Poland, is known vector of microorganisms pathogenic for humans as TBE virus, Borrelia burgdorferi s.1., Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Babesia sp. in this country. Our study aimed to find out whether this tick can also transmit also rickettsiae of the spotted fever group (SFG). DNA extracts from 560 ticks (28 females, 34 males, and 488 nymphs) collected in different wooded areas in northern Poland were examined by PCR for the detection of Rickettsia sp., using a primer set RpCS.877p and RpCS.1258n designated to amplify a 381-bp fragment of gltA gene. A total of 2.9% ticks was found to be positive. The percentage of infected females and males was comparable (10.5% and 11.8%, respectively) and 6.6-7.6 times higher than in nymphs (1.6%). Sequences of four PCR-derived DNA fragments (acc. no. DQ672603) demonstrated 99% similarity with the sequence of Rickettsia helvetica deposited in GenBank. The results obtained suggest the possible role of I. ricinus as a source of a microorganism, which recently has been identified as an agent of human rickettsioses in Europe.

DOCTORS are urging people to keep their pets clean after discovering Australia's first case of a potentially fatal disease transmitted by cat fleas to humans.
A team of doctors reported the discovery of cat-flea typhus in the Medical Journal of Australia this week after they carried out a lengthy investigation similar to those featured in the hit television series House.

Dr Julian Kelly, a paediatrician at the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, said the journey began when a nine-year-old girl was admitted to the hospital in April 2009 with a fever and rash that could not be easily diagnosed.
She was admitted to the intensive care unit three days later when the infection caused her lungs to fill with fluid.

During her stay, three other members of her family fell sick with the mysterious illness, which was later diagnosed as cat-flea typhus, also known as Rickettsia felis.

While blood tests pointed to the uncommon disease group for the patients while they were in hospital, it took about four months for researchers from a specialist laboratory to track down where the disease came from.

''The family had about 10 different types of animals at their home, they had pigs, rats, mice, cats, ducks, and they lived next door to a swamp, so it was very difficult to work out where it would be,'' Dr Kelly said.

However, when doctors realised all of the patients had been in contact with flea-infested kittens, they followed the lead and discovered the kittens' family, which was living on another property, carried fleas with the disease.

''It was quite an entertaining case ? It's taken about 18 months to get to the point of publishing it in the medical journal,'' Dr Kelly said.

He said all of the patients recovered from the illness, which kills about 2 per cent of those infected. Although the bug was rare, its presence in Australia should encourage people to keep their animals clean, he said.

''Make sure you de-flea your cat when you get one. I think that's the take-home message.''

Australian Rickettsial Reference Laboratory director Dr Stephen Graves said that although the disease had been found in cat and dog fleas in Western Australia, it had never been found in humans in Australia. He said people could get the disease if an infected flea bit them, because when fleas bite they defecate the disease from their intestines.

''If the person scratches after being bitten, the flea's faeces get inoculated into the bite site,'' he said. Dr Graves said the disease could cause people to experience symptoms including a fever and rash and could be treated with antibiotics.